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Nothing fails like prayer
stop_wasting_bandwidth 1276 reads
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And now we have scientific evidence backing up the claim! The American Heart Journal has published the best (as in largest and methodologically most accurate) study so far of the effect of intercessory prayer, and it has shown – as any sensible person would have known before spending $2.4 million and a decade to actually do the study – prayer fails to make any difference whatsoever.

The study was conducted by a team led by Harvard Medical School cardiologist Herbert Benson, who is sympathetic to the idea that prayer has healing effects, and funded in large part by the Templeton Foundation, an organization devoted to the scientific improvement of our understanding of spirituality (whatever that latter phrase may mean).

See link for the rest.



At the end of this Email is a quote of the month by Jay Leno.. If you don't read anything else, Please   Read what he Said.  
Very well stated,   Mr. Leno.
TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE  
1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's!  

First, we survived being born to mothers  
Who smoked and/or drank while they were  
Pregnant.  

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing,  
Tuna from a can and didn't get tested for diabetes.  

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-base paints.  

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles,  
Locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode  
Our bikes, we had baseball caps not helmets on our heads.  

As infants & children,  
We would ride in cars with no car seats,  
No booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes.  

Riding in the back of a pick-up truck on a warm day  
Was always a special treat.  

We drank water  
From the garden hose and not from a bottle.  

We shared one soft drink with four friends,  
From one bottle and no one actually died from this.  

We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon.  
We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar.  
And, we weren't overweight.  
WHY?  

Because we were  
Always outside playing...that's why!  

We would leave home in the morning and play all day,  
As long as we were back when the  
Streetlights came on.  

No one was able  
To reach us all day. And, we were O.K.  

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps  
And then ride them down the hill, only to find out  
We forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes  
a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's and X-boxes.  
There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable,  
No video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's,  
No cell phones,   No personal computers, no Internet and no chat rooms.   WE HAD FRIENDS  
And we went outside and found them!  

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth  
And there were no lawsuits from these accidents.  

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt,  
And the worms did not live in us  
Forever.  

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays,  
Made up games with sticks and tennis balls and,  
Although we were told it would happen,  
We did not put out very many eyes.  

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and  
Knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just  
Walked in and talked to them.  

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team.  
Those who didn't had to learn to deal
With disappointment.  
Imagine that!!  

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law  
Was unheard of.  
They actually sided with the law!  

These generations have produced some of the best  
Risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.  

The past 50 years  
Have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.  
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility,  
and we learned how to deal with it all.  

If YOU are one of them?  
CONGRATULATIONS!
You might want to share this with others  
who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the  
lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives  
for our own good .  

While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know  
how brave and lucky their parents were.  

Kind of makes you want to run through the house  
with scissors, doesn't it ?  

The quote of the  
month is by Jay Leno:  
"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control,  
mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms  
tearing up the country from one end to another,  
and with the threat of   swine flu  
and terrorist attacks.  
Are we sure this is a good time  
to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?'  

For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us.. ..go ahead and delete this.  

For the rest of  
us...pass this on.  
A Small Prayer!  

God determines who walks into your life....it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let go.  

I need this back. If you'll do this for me, I'll do it for you.  

When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need. Take 60 seconds and give this a shot! All you do is simply say the following small prayer for the person who sent you this.  

Father,  
God bless my friend in whatever it is that You know they may need this day!  
And may their life be full of your peace, prosperity, and power  
as he/she seeks to have a closer relationship with you.  
Amen.  

Then send it on to five other people, including the one who sent it to you Within hours you will have caused a multitude of people to pray for other people. Then sit back and watch the power of God work in your life.  

P. S... Five is good, but more is better.


And now we have scientific evidence backing up the claim! The American Heart Journal has published the best (as in largest and methodologically most accurate) study so far of the effect of intercessory prayer, and it has shown – as any sensible person would have known before spending $2.4 million and a decade to actually do the study – prayer fails to make any difference whatsoever.

The study was conducted by a team led by Harvard Medical School cardiologist Herbert Benson, who is sympathetic to the idea that prayer has healing effects, and funded in large part by the Templeton Foundation, an organization devoted to the scientific improvement of our understanding of spirituality (whatever that latter phrase may mean).

See link for the rest.

There's an old saying;  Shit in one hand and pray in the other and see which hand fills up faster.

But still, I'm going to defend prayer, not because I'm religious (I'm not in the traditional sense.) but because there is more to this universe than that which science can measure.

The quote from Jesus:  "Render unto Caeasr that which is Caesar's, and unto the Lord that which is the Lord's."  is apropos.

Science has no way to measure what prayer can or can not do, and objective circumstances confirm this.  Yet the need to pray reveals something that is at the essence of being human.  The lack of scientific verification is not a proof that it is wrong to pray.  After all, the laws of science existed long before mankind discovered them and put our stamp of approval on them.

I thank CS for posting this.  If nothing else, it is good food for thought.

this part:

"Then send it on to five other people, including the one who sent it to you Within hours you will have caused a multitude of people to pray for other people. Then sit back and watch the power of God work in your life.  

P. S... Five is good, but more is better."

I think it should read something like "Within hours you will have added more unnecessary traffic to the internet".

Because it talks about God and prayer it isn't considered a chain email?

IMHO, I was checking out some lit reviews on the subject and the conclusions did not seem solid either way.
Prayer does not lend itself well to Quantitative measures, as it is Faith based.

So actually little reason should be involved.

Although Benson is a local and world renowned pioneer in wellness, mindfulness etc., I think that people should use whatever tools works for them.

It is a mystery how prayer works for some, as well as; the phenomenon of positive imagery.

So use what works for you, and cast reason and the rest aside.

Just saying

INCLUDE EOM (END OF MESSAGE) TO ALL SUBJECT LINE ONLY POSTS.
(edited by mod)

-- Modified on 7/11/2011 6:47:17 AM

Chain, chain chain ....

Point taken.  You did not mention your dislike for chain mails.  That is an absolute.  You either like them or you don't.  That is reason based.    I do not follow chain mails.  I will not comment nor can not comment on whether prayer works.   I just respect the right to choose... or not to choose   ...prayer.

Amen   or a woman for that matter.

This post brought back some great memories!! I had forgot how much the world has changed!
I'm so glad i lived thru the days of the first space flights, a man on the moon, Woodstock, Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin, AM radio, vinyl records, 45 rpm records, the Viet Nam war, hippies, etc!!
Thanks for the memories,,i feel young again!!!  lol

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